Brenee Brown

This is Joe Brown’s first ever box set, which celebrates his prolific 60-year career playing music. It contains six albums of music drawn from across his entire career from the very beginning, through the folk/rock combo Brown’s Home Brew, right up to the present day. Many of the numbers will be little known while hitherto unreleased material also features. The package also contains a live DVD, three card inserts of early posters, a multi-coloured patch and a Joe Brown plectrum. The very special collection pays tribute to a musician’s life well lived. It demonstrates both Joe’s versatility (he plays many instruments) and the range of his music. He is equally at home with Leadbelly standards, Golden Gate Quartet gospel songs,1930s’ classics and instrumentals, real hoe down country music and country blues. Not to mention klezmer, pop and absolutely authentic rock ‘n’ roll… Joe Brown’s skill set is diverse and his appeal all-embracing.

"Integral James Brown 1957-1962" is a comprehensive collection of James Brown's early work. This album showcases some of his most influential recordings during the formative years of his career.

"Integral James Brown 1957-1962" is a comprehensive collection of James Brown's early work. This album showcases some of his most influential recordings during the formative years of his career.

Brown's rags-to-riches-to-rags story has heroic and tragic dimensions of mythic resonance. Born into poverty in the South, he ran afoul of the law by the late '40s on an armed robbery conviction. With the help of singer Bobby Byrd's family, Brown gained parole and started a gospel group with Byrd, changing their focus to R&B as the rock revolution gained steam. The Flames, as the Georgian group was known in the mid-'50s, signed to Federal/King and had a huge R&B hit right off the bat with the wrenching, churchy ballad "Please, Please, Please." By that point, the Flames had become James Brown & the Famous Flames; the charisma, energy, and talent of Brown made him the natural star attraction. All of Brown's singles over the next two years flopped, as he sought to establish his own style, recording material that was obviously derivative of heroes like Roy Brown, Hank Ballard, Little Richard, and Ray Charles. In retrospect, it can be seen that Brown was in the same position as dozens of other R&B one-shots: talented singers in need of better songs, or not fully on the road to a truly original sound.

Le James Brown funk c'est le James Brown qui ne se contente pas du langage R&B et surtout soul des 60's. La soul, ce médium positif, qui n'a pas coupé le cordon avec le gospel, et tente d'allier sophistication des arrangements et pop music (au vrai sens de musique populaire). Leurs génies même ne lui suffisent pas. Et contrairement à un Nat King Cole, James n'aspire pas à rentrer dans une case façonnée par les Blancs. Il sait très bien qu'à son apogée, LeRoi Jones écrira « James Brown est notre poète noir n°1 ». Mais avant de porter une telle armure, James Brown ne pouvait échapper au conte de fée que la bannière étoilée aime raconter à ses enfants les soirs d'hiver près de la cheminée. Ces histoires improbables d'un moins que rien langé dans les eaux anthracites des caniveaux des bleds pouilleux du sud de l'Amérique, qui se termine sur des affiches placardées en lettres de feu dans les plus grandes salles de concerts du territoire et du reste du monde.

"Please, Please, Please"; "Think"; "Try Me";"The Amazing James Brown" plus four bonus tracks.An early version of The Famous Flames (with ever evolving name changes) was formed by Bobby Byrd in 1953 featuring among others, the one and only James Brown.

Brown's rags-to-riches-to-rags story has heroic and tragic dimensions of mythic resonance. Born into poverty in the South, he ran afoul of the law by the late '40s on an armed robbery conviction. With the help of singer Bobby Byrd's family, Brown gained parole and started a gospel group with Byrd, changing their focus to R&B as the rock revolution gained steam. The Flames, as the Georgian group was known in the mid-'50s, signed to Federal/King and had a huge R&B hit right off the bat with the wrenching, churchy ballad "Please, Please, Please." By that point, the Flames had become James Brown & the Famous Flames; the charisma, energy, and talent of Brown made him the natural star attraction. All of Brown's singles over the next two years flopped, as he sought to establish his own style, recording material that was obviously derivative of heroes like Roy Brown, Hank Ballard, Little Richard, and Ray Charles. In retrospect, it can be seen that Brown was in the same position as dozens of other R&B one-shots: talented singers in need of better songs, or not fully on the road to a truly original sound.